A $5.5 million reconstruction package for the Cook island of Aitutaki, which was devastated by Cyclone Pat, was announced today by Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully.

Cyclone Pat ripped through the Cooks last month, causing severe damage on Aitutaki.

“Around 80 per cent of the houses on the island were affected in some way, and 72 were completely destroyed,” Mr McCully said today.

“Tourism on Aitutaki is a vital income source for the Cook Islands. Our assistance will help get things back to ‘business as usual’ as quickly as possible, and ensure the economy does not suffer long-term effects.”

New Zealand had already provided $350,000 for emergency relief efforts, while a RNZAF C-130 Hercules and engineering team supported local efforts in the immediate aftermath of the cyclone.

“We are now addressing the longer-term reconstruction needs through a substantial contribution to the Cook Islands Government’s reconstruction plan,” Mr McCully said.

Donald Trump's weekend of assaults on Robert Mueller's investigation pushed Washington closer than ever to the major crisis of governance that could ensue if the President were to act on his fury and fire the special counsel.

A worker at the French Consulate in Jerusalem has been arrested for smuggling weapons from Gaza into East Jerusalem and the West Bank using his diplomatic immunity, the Israel Security Agency (ISA) announced Monday after a joint investigation with Israeli police.

Millions of people across the country rallied around 2-year-old Tripp Halstead as he foguht for his life after getting crushed by a falling tree branch outside his day care in Jefferson, Georgia back in 2012.

Nearly one third of first-year college students have thought about suicide, according to a study across eight countries, and non-heterosexual identity or feelings were the biggest risks for this kind of thinking or behavior.